The two questions we get most frequently are "Where Do You Work?" and "What Do You Do?" Being a relatively small nonprofit with an outsized mission means the way we work matters. We know that staying in our "right lane" is crucial to maximizing and sustaining impact.
Global Programs
African Specific Programs Sierra Leone
United Methodist Church Annual Conference, Sierra Leone (UMC SLAC)
Growing out of the UMC connectional ministries, and an alliance between two UMC Pastors, we have a long-standing alliance agreement with three programs that we helped them to found and establish, the Child Reintegration Centre, Mercy UMC Hospital, and the Missionary Resource and Training Centre. We continue to work with UMC SLAC to improve their program operational capacity, and oversight and management of these three child focused orphan-prevention ministries. We also feed capacity-building support into their larger orphan-prevention mission endeavors, such as the UMC Health Ministries, and the UMC Educational Ministries, the UMC Child and Family Ministries, and the UMC Economic Development Ministries, but we reserve the majority of our direct financial aid and global staff support for the MTRC, the CRC, and Mercy.
Other Sierra Leone Orphan Prevention Allies
Healey International Relief Foundation
and Tenki for Born
Our growing relationship with HIRF, another faith-based NGO like HCW working in Sierra Leone, is one of the clearest indicators of our attitude about the value of allyship, and an example of how collaboration ensures that the children of Sierra Leone have sustainable, local sources of continuous care. Healey gives direct aid and in-kind contributions, training supports, medical equipment evaluation and repair, and professional mentorship to health services, clinicians, and providers all across Sierra Leone, including Mercy UMC, and collaborates with HCW on an incredibly successful maternal health midwifery training, as well as various orphan prevention strategies in Sierra Leone. HIRF and TfB support the TGH global alliance, particularly with respect to allies in Sierra Leone who share resources with one another. HIRF and HCW provide one another with mutually beneficial direct aid contributions that accelerate program impacts. HCW supports Healey's work on combatting non-communicable diseases like epilepsy, while Healey supports HCW's work in combatting HIVAIDs, child malnutrition, childhood disease and malaria in rural villages outside of Bo.
Supporting maternal health and wellbeing before, during, and immediately following childbirth is one of the best orphan prevention strategies HCW supports. The poorest populations, such as those found in rural Sierra Leone, in the indigenous tribes of central and Caribbean North America continent are the communities with children who are most susceptible to orphanhood during the first 1000 days of life.
NORTH AMERICAN PROGRAMS
While HCW's efforts in North America are a miniscule portion of our annual budget - around 3% - and does not divert any of the donor dollars that were intended for other mission allies. This slight bit of funding and published impact of our support through HCW communications channels significantly raises the ability of locally led programs to implement sustainable life-saving measures, raise awareness of the issues and the pockets of poverty that exist in North American countries, increase understanding of why we focus on orphan-prevention strategies, while generating donors, and forging connections.
HAITI
The mission of Global Birthing Home Foundation/Maison de Naissance is to significantly reduce maternal and infant mortality rates in under-served, rural communities of southern Haiti.
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Maison de Naissance stands alone in the Les Cayes/Torbeck region of Haiti as a full-service provider of professional, compassionate, and culturally relevant maternal and infant health care. MN has a 100% Haitian staff, most recruited from the local region.
In just over 21 years of 24/7 operations, MN has delivered almost 10,000 healthy babies to healthy mothers in the country with the highest rates of maternal and infant mortalities in the western hemisphere, without a single maternal mortality to date. No patient is ever refused care for any reason – all are welcomed equally. It has weathered multiple natural disasters, including hurricanes up to category 4, and a 7.2 magnitude earthquake, without ever ceasing operations. 60% of health care facilities in Haiti have ceased operations over the past five years, resulting from gangs taking control of the national airport and seaport in the capital city region. Meanwhile, MN has continued to thrive, and has been expanding its geographic footprint through the creation of remote outpost screening clinics, outside of the traditional zone of service. Patients receiving screening and consultations for pregnancy and potential complications, as well as STI testing. Those requiring more intensive testing or care are referred to the main MN campus for care, with transportation provided as needed. |
Guatemala
MAYA MIDWIFERY INTERNATIONAL
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Empowering Indigenous Midwives in Guatemala
Maya Midwifery International is a 501c3 charity dedicated to assisting indigenous Guatemalan Maya Midwives and other local health providers in addressing the many obstacles to effective and sustainable health care in their communities. The community currently served by MMI's projects is the predominantly Maya community in the Mam-speaking area of the western highlands of Guatemala, a population of approximately 50,000.This area suffered significantly during the 36-year Guatemalan civil war, which ended in 1996. The area continues to experience the social, economic, and psychological effects of the war. Guatemala is one of the poorest countries in the Western hemisphere with the fourth highest rate of chronic childhood malnutrition in the world. 50% of children under 5 suffer from malnutrition nationwide; in parts of the western highlands this percentage can reach 80-90%.
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